ABOUT

The Phantom Pines is a dark folk project created by singer/songwriter Jann Erik.

Jann grew up in the punk and metal scene of Seattle, but life moved unexpectedly and he found himself serving in the Army. He headed south to California, then east to Texas. Away from the punk kids of the Pacific Northwest, Jann started listening more and more to country and folk.

On a trip to Austin one long weekend, Jann bought a beat up acoustic guitar at a pawn shop, slapped a Blood Brothers sticker on it, and started making music. Eventually, he was called to head even further east to Iraq. He brought the guitar with him, often to the ire of a grizzled old sergeant who yelled at him every time he took it out of the case.

Jann spent a few more years in the beating sun of Texas and Iraq before returning home to Seattle where sunlight became just a memory.

The Phantom Pines is inspired by bands and artists such as The White Buffalo, Danzig, Ben Nichols (Lucero), Wolves in the Throne Room, Lost Dog Street Band, and The Murder City Devils, and is colored by the towering evergreens and year-round mists that haunt the Pacific Northwest.

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True to the meaning of Dark Folk. It has undertones of Americana, but has a very forward darkness.

- Sub-Standard Alien

Folk music with a dark, gloomy undertone. It's very fun... well, fun was the wrong word... it's very good, but again, very dark.

- Punk as Folk